Olympic Disappointment

With their loss to Chinese Taipei, Canada fails to qualify for the playoffs in Beijing. While they won't be able to medal, they're still Olympians, and we congratulate them on all their Olympic efforts.

Olympics: August 13

Starting lineup for Canadians in their preliminary game vs. China:

1. Adam Stern #7
2. Stubby Clapp #11
3. Michael Saunders #20
4. Scott Thorman #40
5. Nick Weglarz #33
6. Matt Rogelstad #4
   
7. Jimmy Vanostrand #29
8. Chris Robinson #30
   
9. Emmanuel Garcia #15
10. Chris Begg #35

12:30 AM EST: Game beings streaming live on nbcolympics.com in the 4th inning. Since it's online, there's no verbal commentators. A mic seems to be in each dugout, as you can hear the Canadians chatting (swearing sometimes) and I assume the Chinese are doing the same. It's actually really nice to listen to a game without anyone commentating. And it's highly amusing to hear some of the conversations going on in the dugout. For instance, in between innings, some young Chinese cheerleaders came out and performed on the field, as one member of team Canada commented, "Laker girls." Haha. Very cool that NBC is -- streaming everything live online for anyone to see -- gotta love the interwebs. I also love that the crowd does the 7th inning stretch and even sings "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" -- it's so interesting to see which how a sport that I've only experienced in the American culture is carried out in other places.

2:20 AM: Game over. Mercy rule in effect after 8 innings. Adam contributed with a two-run triple and scored on a sac fly by Stubby Clapp. Great start for Team Canada as they beat China 10-0.

Olympic Coverage

Looking to see Adam in action? Here's the schedule of when the Canadian baseball team will be playing. All games are live and streamed on NBC Olympics, with the exception of the Canada vs. USA game which will be replayed on the MSNBC TV station. All times are EST. All games are preliminary round-robin games, though hopefully more times will be added when the team qualifies for the playoffs!

Tuesday, August 12, 11:30p - 2:30a vs. China
Thursday, August 14, 6:00a - 9:00a vs. Cuba
Friday, August 15, 6:00a - 9:00a vs. South Korea
Friday, August 15, 10:30p - 1:30a vs. USA
Saturday, August 16, 12:30p - 5:00p vs. USA (on MSNBC; taped)
Sunday, August 17, 10:30p - 1:30a vs. Japan
Wednesday, August 20, 6:00a - 9:00a vs. Chinese Taipei

Happy watching!

Olympics Countdown

With the Summer Olympics beginning in less than one week, Adam Stern and the rest of Team Canada's baseball squad are hoping they can pull off a medal-winning performance this time around. The Forward has a nice article highlighting Jewish athletes, Adam included, headed to Beijing. We'll be following Adam & Team Canada as they begin play next week.

Opening Day!

Yesterday, both Adam's Norfolk Tides and our own Pawtucket Red Sox opened their seasons. Hard to believe that baseball season is upon us when there's still snow on the ground up here in Maine.

The Tides fell to Buffalo, while the PawSox prevailed against the Indians on the pitching of such faces as Bartolo Colon and the loveable Chris Hansen. Jefferoni (Jeff Bailey) also contributed a hit.

Tonight, our friend David Pauley (see below with some adoring fans) will try to continue the opening win streak.

Adam Abroad

Happy Spring and Happy Baseball Season!

Adam traveled with Team Canada to Australia and Taiwan over the past couple weeks to play in qualifiers for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Adam finished the tournament with a .200 BA, and heads back to Spring Training with the Orioles organization.

“It brings back alot of memories and you relive a lot of emotions” - Adam, 3/6/08

Congrats Paw Sox Alums!

Congratulations to the Boston Red Sox on their World Series Championship! It was a complete organizational effort, and we are especially proud of some of our old friends in Pawtucket: Dustin Pedroia (Dustpans), Kyle Synder, David Pauley, and the rest. It's a beautiful thing that just a year ago these guys were down in Pawtucket chasing their dreams, and now they hit it big! Congrats to all.



Left: Dustin Pedroia playing short in Pawtucket in June of 2006.